Aces
by extra rice
Summary: Diamonds, Spades, Hearts, Clovers...There is more to cards than we really know.


Title: Aces

Author: The Legendary Kanin

Fandom: Axis Powers Hetalia

Pairing: ~shh~

Chapter One: Diamonds, Spades, Hearts, Clubs

He was born a very fortunate person. Under the wing of a large country, given the guidance he needed to stand on his own, yet still given his own privacy, he was deemed a very lucky man. What he needed, he found in his house, and what he did not have, well, he got from his guardian. And, though he had been independent from China for a long time already, his "elder brother" always made sure he was fine and nothing was going wrong.

So it shocked him when Wang Yao just came out from his house (or apartment, like _someone_ wanted to call it) contented- grumpy, yes, but satisfied indeed. Of course he knew that no crime was committed in _their_ household, since his significant other was a very loyal man and would never dare to cheat on him. This he had no doubts about, yet it was strangely amusing to see the ancient man in such a predicament. Yao with such a face was like Feliciano eating Arthur's cooking, meaning it was nearly IMPOSSIBLE, or so Kiku thought.

What in the world happened in his house?

Kiku paced to the Oriental and gave the elder one a formal greeting. Normally, if Yao went out of the house and they met along the road, the former would brush him off and give him the cold shoulder, thus leading to Kiku asking his special someone what in the world they argued about that made his ancestor pissed. However, this time Yao was actually greeting him back with a smile pasted on his young face. "Kiku, I hope you're all happy now! I give you my baby panda-chan as a gift of luck for your, erm, relationship with _him._" A miniature panda stuffed toy was thrust into the Japanese' arms and without any warning he was left alone on the spot while China disappeared into nowhere.

It had always been his hobby to analyze things before he did anything, but this time was an exception. In his head, he had formulated a hypothesis regarding the cause of the Chinese's change in attitude, yet he found he could not believe it at all. Though he had made a lot more in his head, he was left trying to assure himself that things would be well. After all, with _him_, who managed to get out of problems most of the time, the Japanese was in safe hands. His hand shook on the doorknob that would open the door to his questions' answers, and as he twisted it, he tilted his head to see apartment's residence plate. Seeing his and his lover's names embossed on the silver plate, he gave himself a special smile, one that was rare on his face and only himself and _that man_ see.

"Hey, Kiku, you can come in. It's not like this apartment isn't yours." _His_ voice rang from the kitchen. Surely _he _was _attempting_ to cook pasta again, declaring that it was practice for cooking ramen, which _he _always failed to make well. Uttering a relieved sigh, Kiku deposited his shoes at the shoe rack and took off his socks, dropping them in the socks basket and slipping on a pair of house slippers as accustomed in his previous abode. He then brought the basket to the designated laundry area (_his_ favorite working area, aside from the bedroom and the study) to add to the week's laundry job. Knowing that _Mr. "Sazo" _was sure to say "sazo" again when asked to do the laundry instead of doing anything related to kitchen work, he transferred the contents of the basket to the large laundry deposit and returned the basket to its original position near the shoe rack.

The Nihonjin expected to see a major disaster in the kitchen, which included a greasy and wet floor, unknown black substances on the walls near the stove, and _him_ covered in the same black substance, the blond now turned to a black-haired menace who needed bathing. Of course, there _he _was, matching Kiku's _expectations, _scratching the back of his neck and planting a large smirk on his face. "Hey, there you are." Despite his hidden irritation at his lover's constant ability to make a mess in the kitchen, such an event just meant that the European wanted to do something for him, even though such a feat was hard to obtain. Cooking was one of the things that this man would die of if forced to do in a five-star hotel, yet pleasing the Japanese when it comes to food was not an easy task, so Kiku did the cooking often.

"Anou, _keisai_, you should have waited for me to cook for you. You'd spare yourself the trouble of cleaning the kitchen," Kiku said with a grin as he looked at the European's change of facial expression the moment his said _keisai_. While he walked to the stove to inspect another attempt of cooking from the Westerner, the cook pulled at his suit. "Hey! Don't call me wife! You're the bottom tonight!" Kiku just gave a short chortle and took a ladle and a bowl to give himself a dose of the food _he_ made. Surprisingly, it tasted quite good, and his face lit up with a sense of satisfaction and admiration. _He_ never made food that tasted this good. Even with a recipe and all the necessary ingredients (and, of course, with Kiku teaching him what to do and what to put), every attempt had been a canker sore for Kiku. Checking if Francis or anyone else was present, the Japanese wondered (and, damn, did not trust that _he_ cooked it) if _he _was not the one who did it.

"Cut it out, Kiku. You're insulting me." _He _glared at the Asian. Kiku, noticing his mistake and the obvious effect it had on his boyfriend, bowed in apology to the Westerner. After a minute of bowing, Kiku was finally forgiven as Arthur kissed him fully on the lips, _his_ skilled tongue grabbing the pasta from the Japanese' mouth.

They were enjoying their tongue battle so much that none of them noticed Francis and Feliciano outside the kitchen window, grinning at each other like mad and running off to who-knows-where, bringing with them their ingredients, cooking utensils, and an Italian recipe book.

Approximately 1000-word drabble, brought to you by The Legendary Kanin (alicebeckam, in LJ). Pardon me for any typographical errors, mistakes in grammar and culture. I am neither English nor Japanese (I don't even have a nation-tan! Hidekaz-sensei, give Philippines some love!), so I only have an inkling about what the British English and Japanese sound like.  Kindly drop off a comment or review! For your information, this is my first ever Hetalia fan fiction, so it would be helpful if anybody would give me tips for stories outside the Naruto fandom!

For those who don't know what the story and chapter titles mean, there is actually a fortune telling game for one's relationship with another person, and the Diamonds-Spades-Hearts-Clubs Ace sequence means "You are a fortunate person (Diamonds for fortune, Spades represent the person asking for a fortune) but work harder with the person you love (Hearts mean love, Clubs represent the person that the fortune asker requested a relation to) and more fortune will go to both of you." It's a nifty easy card game; if you want to ask how to do it, just drop a comment and I'll pass on the knowledge.


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